Voted one of "The 10 Sexiest Women of 2001" by the readers of Black Men Magazine. Has a son named Marcel. Born and raised in Washington, DC and attended Oxon Hill High School in Oxon Hill, Maryland.
First attended North Carolina Agric & Tech where she attempted to study Electrical Engineering. She failed Pre-Calculus so she transferred to Howard University.
She worked two jobs: in the morning as a secretary at the Pentagon; in the night as a singing and dancing waitress on a dinner cruise ship to pay for Howard. She graduated from Howard University in 1995.
The father of her only son died unexpectedly in 1997. Contrary to previously published accounts, Taraji is a relative, not a descendant, of North Pole explorer Matthew Henson.
First and middle names are Swahili for 'expect' and 'love', respectively. An only child.
